Campione! - Volume 17 - The Hero's Name

by Taketsuki Jou

  Erica's expression clearly increased in worry.

  "Hey Godou, you remember her secret, don't you?"

  "That one, right? When going out, Alice-san always uses the spell of spirit body separation."

  "Yes, likewise for her expedition to Asia this time. While her physical body sleeps in the Greenwich residence, only her ectoplasm flies out here. However, her body was suddenly struck by high fever..."

  "Like Mariya!?"

  "Just as a precaution, her ectoplasm returned to the body to check out the situation for now. However, the princess left you a message."

  Erica showed her cellphone's LCD display to the surprised Godou.

  A text message was shown. The part written in Japanese was probably meant for Godou. As expected of the Duke's daughter who was highly accomplished in linguistics.

  'Fire and wind are the precursors to calamity. Please pay attention to unusual changes in the ocean and the earth.'

  "..."

  This warning came from the Miko-Hime in possession of spirit vision powers. Kaoru spoke to the surprised Godou:

  "According to Amakasu-san, this basically means wind gives rise to fire while fire melts iron ore in turn. The melted iron forms a sword of steel to conquer the ocean and the earth—The sudden warming and strong winds seem to be the byproducts from the awakening of the 'King of the End.'"

  By the bedside, Liliana and Ena were tending to the Hime-Miko, collapsed from fever, while listening intently to the discussion.

  The silver-haired knight spoke slowly:

  "The princess and Mariya Yuri are both miko who have inherited bloodlines of the Divine Ancestors. They also possess atavistic spirit powers of high caliber. Their bodily changes are also effects of this. Furthermore, Divine Ancestors are reincarnations of mother earth goddesses. In other words, 'daughters of the land.'"

  "The closer to their ancestors, the more easily affected by unusual changes in the land, right..."

  Ena commented gravely.

  Godou nodded in agreement, staring at Yuri who was sleeping on the bed.

  "Don't force her to get up tonight. Let her rest like this. Give Hikari a call later."

  "Understood. Leave it to me. Speaking of which, Godou-san..."

  Kaoru suddenly changed the subject.

  "Do you still remember? An earthquake happened during the battle last night."

  "Yeah. When the 'King of the End' was using his bow. It stopped very quickly."

  Just by summoning the strongest weapon, it shook heaven and earth.

  Although it was a bit absurd, this performance did not taint the reputation of the hero of salvation at all.

  "Almost simultaneous with the earthquake last night, we confirmed a concerning phenomenon. Perhaps it was pure coincidence, but I've already asked Amakasu-san to investigate."

  Speaking of which, Amakasu Touma was not present.

  Instead of coming to the Sayanomiya mansion, he had left directly from the Skytree to investigate the site.

  "Then, what happened where?"

  Just as Godou asked, Yuri moaned from bed.

  Godou and Kaoru ended the conversation and looked at the Hime-Miko. Everyone did the same. Under everyone's gaze, Yuri suddenly sat up.

  Panting heavily, she looked around her blankly.

  "I-It was a dream just now...?"

  "Did you see something? An oracle in a dream?"

  By the pillow, Ena was already used to this kind of situation and asked Yuri.

  Walking to Godou's side, Kaoru whispered in his ear: "Ena is asking if she received an oracle via spirit vision in the dream."

  Clearly having woken up from a nightmare, Yuri murmured softly in a weak voice.

  "I-I think so. But it was a very terrifying dream..."

  It seemed to be something she did not want to bring up lightly.

  Yuri remained silent for a while, calming her breathing. Then she looked up with determination and swept her gaze across everyone in the guest room before slowly starting to speak.

  "First of all, I would like everyone to watch the scene I just saw."

  Crossing her arms in front of her chest in bed, the Hime-Miko closed her eyes.

  Clad in a miko outfit, her entire body was giving off white light. This was proof that Yuri had learned from Princess Alice her prided spirit power of psychic sensing.

  "I will recreate from my mind the scene I saw in the dream."

  The white light of psychic sensing gradually occupied the entire guest room.

  In the next instant, the scenery in the room changed. Spontaneously, Godou and the rest found themselves looking down from high in the sky at the magnificent appearance of Japan's prided national symbol, the sacred Mount Fuji.

  However, this number one famous mountain of Japan—known visually to every Japanese person—erupted.

  The sacred peak of Mount Fuji was spewing flames, smoke, lava and volcanic pellets from its volcano mouth, scattering them all over the ground.

  The flowing lava was scorching the mountain's surface, turning into great scorching rivers flowing towards the foot of the mountain.

  —At this moment, the scenery changed before their eyes.

  Unlike the distinctive Mount Fuji, the location of this mountain range was impossible to tell from sight alone.

  This also seemed to be a volcanic zone with pillars of fire spewing from various peaks. The entire mountain range was erupting.

  —The scenery changed again.

  This time, it was an island. The volcano in the island's center was giving off smoke and lava.

  —Then a skyscraper overlooking Tokyo from above. The surroundings were similar to the view they had admired from the Skytree's observation deck during the daytime. But in stark contrast, the volcanic ash fallen from the sky had turned the area all grim and dark. Tokyo was covered in black volcanic ash piled high everywhere.

  —The scenery kept changing.

  A street scorched by the lava flowing from the lowlands. A town obliterated by fiery fragments. Baptism by fire from volcanic pellets falling on the land like raindrops of a heavy downpour. A sky dominated by black and gray.

  —The final view overlooked all the islands of Japan from a great height.

  The sky above the Kantou region was thoroughly covered by dark clouds, making it impossible to see the ground situation clearly. This cloud layer was most likely formed from volcanic ash.

  Furthermore, this mass of dark clouds was eventually spread over all the islands.

  Then the entirety of East Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe was covered in black—

  "..."

  While everyone was left speechless, the scenery finally returned to that of the Sayanomiya mansion's guest room.

  Just as Yuri said, what she saw in her nightmare was extremely terrifying.

  "Speaking of which..."

  Liliana was the first to start a conversation amidst troubled thoughts.

  "Heroes of steel are the sons of volcanoes. The hero Perseus had descended on Mount Vesuvius at Naples, whereas the Great Sage Equaling Heaven also held his magical ritual at Mount Nantai. If the 'King of the End' were to increase the spiritual energies of fire and wind, causing the ocean and the earth to heat up... It is foreseeable that the volcanic zone will be affected."

  "Godou-san."

  Kaoru spoke up as well, clearly without her usual carefree airs.

  "The 'concerning phenomenon' I mentioned earlier is actually related to volcanoes as well. A number of volcanoes at the Izu Islands are confirmed to be smoking. Volcanic activity in that region is frequent to begin with, hence it was originally thought to be pure coincidence."

  Kaoru had also mentioned dispatching Amakasu to investigate as a precaution.

  "In any case, investigators will first be sent to the volcanic zones near Kantou. The Izu Islands, the Ogasawara Islands, Hakone and Mount Fuji... But the mountain systems in Nagano, Yamanashi, Gunma, Tochiki, Fukushima are essentially linked with volcanoes..."
>
  After witnessing the ominous vision of the future, Godou sighed. The commotion related to the "King of the End" was evidently heading towards "a world crisis like every time."

  "However, the enemy this time is incomparably stronger than all previous others."

  No matter what, the decisive battle against the Devil King exterminating hero was gradually approaching.

  Godou nodded at his companions. In any case, he had to make a trip to the Netherworld first. Proper preparations must be made for this now.

  Then a few hours passed.

  Kusanagi Godou was stepping into the domain of the Netherworld again after a long absence.

  This was a mysterious domain providing a view of unbelievable scenery every time. As previously, Liliana had opened a portal using witchcraft. Godou passed through the portal and again, he saw scenery that could not possibly exist in the surface world.

  He was currently in the center of a sea.

  However, the water was red, as though a red tide outbreak had occurred in this entire region of the sea.

  The only thing that could be called land was the small island where Godou was standing. Expressed through sensibilities of the mundane world, its area was the size of a convenience store.

  Looking into the distance over the sea, some kind of viscous fluid could be seen floating occasionally among the waves.

  One of the two accompanying him, Seishuuin Ena, spoke quietly.

  "It feels like the primordial sea that gave birth to the islands of Japan and the Leech Child."

  "I remember it was the myth where Izanagi and Izanami stirred the ocean to create the islands, right?"

  Recalling vague memories, Godou replied.

  However, these whereabouts were not important. All he needed to do was to imagine the destination in the Netherworld clearly and they would be able to teleport there instantly.

  Nevertheless, Godou lacked talent in this critical aspect of imagination.

  Hence, apart from Ena who was used to the Netherworld, another expert was accompanying him.

  "Mariya, how do you feel?"

  "Do not worry. It does not feel that unpleasant—No."

  In the Netherworld, the strength of the mind and the ectoplasm was more important than that of the physical body.

  As that was the case, Yuri with her powers of spirit vision and psychic sensing was actually the most dependable here. Hence, Godou still hoped that someone like her could accompany him, in spite of the fact that she had her eyes closed due to high fever and illness.

  One additional reason was that Yuri herself wished the most to accompany him in the face of an unprecedented crisis.

  "It would be better to say that I feel more at ease after arriving in the Netherworld. Please do not worry."

  Indeed, her face had improved in color.

  She did not seem like she was overexerting herself. Indeed, this was a world where burdens on the mind and ectoplasm were more important than the physical body's. Physical illness was easily compensated for by strength in spirit powers.

  As a side note, both Hime-Miko were dressed in miko outfits.

  On this expedition to the Netherworld, they had also put on upper garments known as the chihaya, similar to the haori. It was like wearing an additional layer of clothing when going outdoors in winter.

  Since Yuri was fine, Godou suggested:

  "Then let's set off. Try finding Susanoo first."

  "Then Ena and Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi will lead the way... But can Ena ask a question first?"

  Godou was taken aback by the sudden question.

  Uncharacteristically, Ena was timidly stealing glances at Godou's face. This behavior was totally unlike that of the cheerful and lively Hime-Miko of the Sword—No wait.

  On the subject of "male-female relationships" that was not her forte, she would act especially meek and cautious.

  "The person who will tell you the true identity of the 'King of the End'... It's a woman after all, right?"

  "!?"

  "Ah, just as suspected."

  "I-I didn't say anything!"

  "Even if nothing was said, it was written on your face. Looks like Ena was right."

  Ena answered a little sadly in a small voice and secretly sighed.

  "As expected of His Majesty. Despite being together with a number of girls, he still manages to get familiar with someone whom neither Ena nor the others know..."

  Leaving behind Godou who was faltering from the sudden questioning, the other Hime-Miko also sighed.

  Naturally, this was Yuri who had been suffering from high fever until just now.

  "It is just as you say, Ena-san. In fact, I have suspected in my heart as well, whether the one we are about to meet would be a woman or not."

  "C-Could you two stop talking about this like it were problematic behavior!?"

  While Godou was feeling inexplicably distraught, he heard the sound of a zither.

  A leisurely melody. The performer was not nearby. This tone color sounded like it was transmitted from across the vast sea.

  The instant Godou heard this music, he remembered everything.

  A night with a waxing crescent moon. Back then, the Princess of Glass had played the same tune.

  "Mariya! Can you fly us to where the music is coming from?"

  "Yes, very well!"

  Sensing Godou's serious attitude, Yuri instantly shelved the subject from just now and closed her eyes to concentrate.

  A moment later, the two Hime-Miko and Godou found themselves on a plain somewhere.

  It was night. Apart from the crescent moon, there was nothing else of note. Silver grass was growing everywhere, reaching human height.

  A woman's enchanting singing voice could be heard in the distance together with a zither's notes.

  In yonder days, there was an evil dragon in the sea. The king immediately drew his bow and shot an arrow, wounding the dragon right in the chest—

  Godou and company nodded at one another, walking towards the singing voice.

  After walking twenty or thirty meters, pushing through the grass, they reached a clearing. A beautiful woman dressed in Juunihitoe was sitting there with her back against a tree trunk lying horizontally on the ground.

  Beautiful long hair the color of flax. Clear eyes the color of glass.

  On her lap was an ancient trapezoidal zither. Both the instrument and the performer were clearly not from Japan.

  "Rakshasa King, you have finally arrived here by your own will. Also, the Japanese miko who have inherited my blood."

  Godou inquired the smiling Princess of Glass:

  "Now that you mention it, then the reason why we are here—"

  "I already have a basic idea."

  As expected of the princess living in the alternate dimension resembling the great spiritual realm.

  That made things easy to explain. Godou spoke the name that Amakasu had told the group.

  "My friend guessed that this might be the true name of the 'King of the End.' But what is it actually?"

  "..."

  The Princess of Glass put her zither away and stood up lightly.

  She was clad in an ornate and heavy Juunihitoe kimono. However, the graceful Princess of Glass walked over to Godou as though her clothing was weightless.

  This too was probably part of the Netherworld's mysteries, where mental strength transcended physical laws.

  Currently, the beautiful Princess of Glass had walked over to in front of Godou.

  "Kusanagi-sama. Will you make a promise with me in return for the answer?"

  "Promise?"

  "Indeed. Even after learning of the crown prince's true identity and destiny, you must still engage His Highness in a battle of life and death, and destroy him. You must avenge our ancestors, the goddesses."

  Just as Godou was surprised by this radical request, the Princess of Glass drew close to his face unexpectedly, kissing him on the lips.

  "Your Majesty!?" "Godou-san!?"

 
Watching this scene silently till now, Ena and Yuri were shocked as well.

  Naturally, this was a kiss performed to cast a spell on a Devil King Campione. Godou's consciousness rapidly left him...

  Part 5

  How many godslayers had been born in the world in the past?

  Godou did not know the answer. There were times when none appeared for two or three centuries while five or six of them could suddenly be born in the same period.

  And right now, in the time period the Princess of Glass was showing him through the [Spell of Visions]—

  This was also a "terrible era" when many godslayers were strutting across the earth.

  Currently, the life of one of these godslayers was playing in Godou's consciousness like a dream or a historical film.

  He was the godslayer who had defeated "the demonic deity with ten lives" and usurped his opponent's authority.

  His trusty sword and armor were made of bronze instead of iron. Evidently a man of the ancient world. The time he lived in was even earlier than Uldin's.

  Like other godslayers, "the godslayer with ten lives" was also a powerful king.

  Apart from fighting Heretic Gods, he also conquered a number of cities and countries, a man of power, ruling over many nations as a great king.

  The residents of all the neighboring countries feared him, calling him the "Devil King who could slaughter even the gods."

  However, he had a mortal enemy as well. A hero who had appeared in an opposing country. The rumored holder of the "destiny of exterminating all Devil Kings in the world." When the hero descended upon the earth, the populace not only worshiped him as a war god but also made him their great general.

  This hero was troublesome as an enemy, but quite a worthy challenge.

  Not only did he possess enough valor to threaten the "godslayer with ten lives," but he also resurrected no matter how many times he was defeated, rising to challenge the Devil King again each time.

  Were this godslayer not in possession of the "ten lives" authority that made him approach immortality, surely he would have died in battle.

  In any case, the situation was a stalemate even though the Devil King held the overall advantage. Hence, the human priests supporting the hero's side held a ritual.